Rory McIlroy will need a lot of time to accept that he has not won a major title for 10 consecutive years. Now, he will have to wait 265 days for the next chance.
It sounded mocking when the planner at Augusta National said: "Please be careful. McIlroy serves." It shows the poor performance of the Northern Irish golfer in recent times.
The reality proved in the fourth hole of round 2. He needs a good start to get through the cut and be able to return to the Premier League Open. What he did was triple bogey.
"22 holes in the tournament and I'm thinking about where I'll go for the holiday next week," McIlroy said after missing the five-cushion cut.
No matter what he plans for the holiday, his thoughts are how to save the next season without any titles at the 4 biggest events. This was a more difficult year than all because of the previous major tournament.
McIlroy took a 2-way lead at the US Open. He controlled very well until he failed a putt in the 16th hole and then dropped behind him when he failed a putt par from about 4 feet in the final hole.
McIlroy was confused so he left Pinehurst, withdrew from the next tournament that week and spent a few days in Manhattan trying to calm his mind.
McIlroy famously said after the 2023 US Open - another opportunity he missed - that, I will spend 100 Sundays like this to get another major championship.
What about Royal Troon at the recent British Open Golf Championship? I would rather have a disappointing Sunday than go home on Friday, he said.
In his career, he has had 4 majors and 26 titles on the PGA Tour alone, along with 3 FedEx Cup titles. And as he said, not only playing 4 events a year, but with 25 tournaments, he still has work to do until the end of the year.
Next, for McIlroy, is the 2024 Olympics. And that raises the question of whether a gold medal can fill the void of many of the trophies he has missed this year.
Golf is still quite new in the Olympic program, having only returned in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. McIlroy missed that Summer Olympics, struggling and a bit uncomfortable about whether to choose between the UK or Ireland flags.
He participated in Tokyo 2020 as a representative of Northern Ireland and lost in the 7-a-side play-off to compete for a bronze medal. I have never tried so much in my life to finish in third place, he said.
In addition to the 2024 Olympics, McIllroy is also aiming for two titles on both sides of the Atlantic: the FedEx Cup in the PGA Tour and the Race to Dubai in the European tour. McIlroy is third at the FedEx Cup and leads Europe.
Tiger Woods has gone 11 years between the two majors, but that is easy to explain. His personal life collapsed after a shocking revelation about mass adultery, followed by multiple leg wounds, 4 back surgeries, and painkillers, leading to him being arrested for driving while intoxicated and old.
For McIlroy, his most recent major was in his 25th year. But when there are not too many problems in life or injuries, 10 years without a major are really problems.
